Street-sweeping machine



S. DUICH.

STREET SWEEPING MACHINE. APPLICATION FILED SEPT.23, I919.

Patented Dec. 28, 1920. 3 SHEEl'S-SHEEI I.

WITNESS. Q, 0% K S. DUICH. STREET SWEEPING MACHINE. APPLICATION FILED SEPT.23, 1919.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

Patented Dec. 28,, 1920.

1H ITNES8.

Patented Dec. 28, 1920.

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BY {21% Emil 7 5.

h lllflzlihl S1? STEVEN DUICI-I, OF COLFAX, IOWA.

STBEET-SWEEPING MACHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Pzeitented Dec. 28, 1921] Application filed September 23, 1919. Serial No. 325,772.

To oZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, STEVEN DUroi-r, a citizen of the United States, residing at Colfax, in the county of Jasper, State of Iowa, have invented a certain new and useful Street Sweeping Machine, of which the following is a specification.

The object of my invention is to provide a street sweeping machine of simple, durable and inexpensive construction.

A further object of my invention is to provide a street sweeping machine adapted to pick up the refuse and so forth, which is ordinarily disposed upon the pavements and the like, and to convey the refuse, so picked up, to a posit-ionwhere it may be clumped into a wagon and carried away.

A further object of my invention is to provide a street sweeping machine, wherein the portion of the machine or brushes which contact with the pavement may be drawn transversely across the pavement by the machine, and at the same time, move forwardly to the forward motion of the machine, thereby causing the contact of the brushes with the pavement to be on a line diagonally across the pavement when the machine is used for ordinary sweeping.

A further object of my invention is to provide a street sweeping machine, which is capable of being adjusted to sweeping paths of various widths along a pavement, and in combination with such a machine, means for carrying the refuse or the like on the pavement toward the central part of the pavement to make it more accessible in case it is necessary to go over the pavement a second time.

A further object of my invention is to provide a conveyer having mounted thereon, brushes and scraping devices, which are detachably secured to the conveyer, so that the sizes, proportions and so forth of the brushes or scrapers may be varied to meet the requirements of the particular street, which is being cleaned. In this connection, it is my object to also provide a conveyer, which will both sweep the street and carry the material to position where it may be dropped into a dump wagon.

A further object of my invention is to make a unitary structure, which is self-propelled, and provided with means of drawing the sweeping apparatus out of engagement with the paving to thereby render it easy to transport the machine from place to place.

A further object of my invention is to provide a machine, which is especially adapted for sweeping the refuse off the pavement adjacent to the curbing, to thereby make unnecessary the use of shovels, after the machine has passed over the street.

With these and other objects in view, my invention consists in the construction, arrangement and combination of the various parts of the device, whereby the objects contemplated are attained as hereinafter more fully set forth, pointed out in my claim, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 shows a top or plan view of my improved device.

Fig. 2 shows an end elevation of the same.

Fig. 3 shows a side elevation, parts being broken away to better illustrate the construction.

F ig. 4: shows a vertical, detailed, enlarged, sectional view, illustrating the construction of my adjustable brushes.

Fig. 5 shows a vertical, detailed, enlarged, sectional View, illustrating the construction of'my adjustable brushes adapted to rotate in the opposite direction; and

Fig. 6 shows a detail view of the clutch mechanism on the drive shaft.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, 1 have used the reference numeral 10 to indicate the rear or traction wheels and the reference numeral 11 to indicate the forward or steerable wheels of my improved machine, which supports a frame consisting of longitudinal frame members 12 and 13.

The frame member 13 is bent to extend laterally somewhat adjacent to its central portion for a purpose which will hereinafter be described. Extending between the frame members 12 and 13 are transverse frame members 14, 15 and 16.

Extending upwardly from the frame members are vertical supports 17 and 18 in which is pivoted a transverse shaft 19. Pivotally mounted on the transverse shaft 19 are the side frame members 20 of a conveyor.

Referring to Fig. 2, it will be noted that the conveyer is disposed when in sweeping position, so that the frame members 20 are inclined upwardly and laterally, and that their lower ends are shaped to form a horizontal portion 21. At the ends of the por tions 20 and 21 are pivotally mounted shafts 22 and 23, and at the connection between the portions 20 and 21, a thread shaft 24 is pivotally mounted.

Mounted on the shafts are suitable sprockets adapted to carry and move the endless apron 25, having removably secured thereto brushes 26 and scrapers 27. The members 20 are connected by a platform or bottom 28, which may be composed of sheetmetal or other suitable material.

From the construction of the parts just described, it will be seen that when the conveyer is held in the position shown in Fig. 2, the operation of the conveyor in the direction indicated by the arrow in that figure, will cause the brushes 26 and scrapers 27 to be drawn laterally across the pavement thereby scraping or brushing material on the pavement onto the member 28 and carrying it to the upper end of the conveyer, where it may be dropped onto a wagon or any other suitable vehicle.

For operating the conveyer, I provide the following mechanism; the shaft 19 has a sprocket 29 fixed to the rear end thereof and forwardly of the sprocket 29 is a second sprocket 30 of similar size. Mounted on the sprocket 29 is a chain 31, which is connected to a source of power by mechanism, which will hereinafter be described.

Mounted on the sprocket 30 is a chain 32, which is operatively connected with a sprocket 33 fixed to the shaft 24, and a second sprocket 34 fixed to the shaft 24 carries a chain 35, which rotates the shaft 22 by means of the sprocket 36.

From the construction of the parts just described, it will be seen that rotation of the shaft 19 will impart rotation to the shafts 22 and 24, thereby operating the conveyer 25.

I provide auxiliary brushes 37, 38, and 39, which comprise shafts with bristles extending therefrom, which may be used either to widen the path which may be swept by my improved street sweeper or to increase the efficiency of the sweeping accomplished by the conveyer.

shaft 42 is a bearing 47 from which extends I an angular bracket 48 having at its upper end a bearing 49 which rotatably but nonslidably supports a shaft 50. The pinion 46 is fixed to the end of the shaft 50 and the latter is the core of the brush 38.

From the construction of the parts just described, it will be seen that rotation of the shaft 22 imparts rotation to the shaft 50 and brush 38 through the pinions 44, 43, 45, and 46 and the shaft 42. As the brush shaft 50 is carried by the bracket 48, it will be seen that the brush may be swung to a plurality of positions upon the shaft 42 thereby permitting the brush to stand with its axis at a plurality of angles relative to the line of travel of the machine.

In any position of the brush, the pinion 45 will mesh with the pinion 46, due to the fact that the swinging of the brush is upon the center of the shaft 42. For locking the brush in its adjusted positions, the bracket 40 is provided with a notched sector 51 designed to receive and coact with the end of a lever 52. The lever 52 is pivoted to the bearing 49 and is extended outwardly above the brush 38, so that the weight of the extending end of the lever will ordinarily hold the opposite end in engagement with a notch of the sector.

When, however, it is desired to rotate or swing the brush, then the lever may be moved upwardly somewhat to disengage it from the sector, which will permit the brush to be swung to another position. The brushes 38 and 39 revolve in opposite directions, so that the material operated upon thereby may be thrown toward the opposite brush or into a pile, where the conveyer will pick it up, and for accomplishing this rotation of the brushes I vary the connection between the brush 39 and the shaft 24 by inverting the pinion 43 and securing it below the bearing 47, so that rotation will be imparted from the shaft 42 to its corresponding shaft 50 in a direction opposite to the rotation of the brush 38. Y

The brush 37 is connected to the rear end of the shaft 22 in a manner similar to that in which the brush 38 is connected, and is designed to throw the dirt, which may be loosened by the conveyer toward the main frame of the'machine, where a second strip of the machine may pick it up, if necessary.

Around the mechanism for driving the brushes 37, 38, and 39, a casing 53 having a cover 542 of any suitable material may be provided. The casing would, of course, be slotted at 55 to permitthe necessary movement of the shafts 50 and the levers 52.

1 provide the following mechanism for driving my improved street sweeper, which consists preferably of a gasolene or other internal combustion engine 56, which is secured to the rear ends of the frame members 12 and 13 by the brackets 57. The drive shaft 58 of the motor extends forwardly and has a worm gear 59 secured thereto.

Mounted at the forward end of the shaft 58 is a slidable clutch member 60, having teeth 61 at the forward ends thereof, adapted to engage a coacting clutch member 62, which is fixed to a stub shaft 63, which is .journaled in the support 17 in line with the drive shaft 58. Fixed to the stub shaft 63 is a sprocket designed to receive the chain 31, where by throwing the clutch members 66 and 62 into engagement will impart rotation from the drive shaft 58 through the chain 31 to sprocket 29, and consequently to the chain 32 and the conveyer 25. Journaled in suitable brackets 64 is a transverse shaft 65, having secured thereto a worm gear 66 adapted to coact with the worm 59. At one end of the shaft 65 is a friction disk 67, and intermediate of its ends is a gear 68. The gear 68 meshes with a gear 69, which in turn imparts rotation to the gears in a gear box 70 through which rotation may be imparted ineither direction to a shaft 71.

The gears in the gear box 70 are controlled by a lever 72. Mounted on the end of the shaft 71 is a sprocket 73, which carries a chain 74, which in turn drives a sprocket 75. The central opening of the sprocket 75 is threaded to coact with a threaded shaft 76, which has one end universally connected to a shaft 77. The shaft 77 is pivotally connected to a yoke 78, which in turn is fixed to a caster wheel shank 79. The caster wheel shank 79 carries a caster wheel 80, and is mounted to reciprocate longitudinally of the conveyer by means of laterally extending brackets 81, which are slidably received in guides 82 secured in the frame members 20 or the member 28 of the conveyer.

From the construction of the parts just described, it will be seen that rotation of the engine shaft 58 will impart rotation to the sprocket 75 in either direction through the worm 66, the gears 68 and 69, gear box 70, sprocket 73 and chain '74. Rotation of the sprocket 75 through the coaction of the threaded opening therein, and the threads &

on the shaft 76 reciprocates the shaft 76 thereby reciprocating the caster wheel shank 7 9 back and forth beneath the conveyer.

Referring to Fig. 2, it will be seen that if the caster wheel is moved longitudinally to the conveyer to its furthermost position by means of the shaft 76 and coacting parts, it will tend to raise the lower end of the conveyer and throw the brushes and conveyer clear from the ground, so that the entire device may be moved from place to place for work on various streets or parts of streets, without having the sweeping device in contact with the pavement.

Secured to the frame member 20 is a caster wheel 83 adapted to support the lower end of the conveyer in a pre-determined position relative to the ground or pavement. Pivoted to the lower end of the members 20 is a transverse apron 8st or the like, the lower edge of which is adapted to contact continuously with the pavement when the sweeper is in operation in order to insure that the dirt carried by the brushes 26 and scrapers 27 will be carried thereby from the pavement up on to the conveyer bottom 28.

For moving the machine forwardly over the ground, a drive shaft 85 is journaled longitudinally of the machine and connected by a differential 86 to the driving wheels 10. Slidably but non-rotatably mounted on the drive shaft 85 is a sleeve 88, having at either end friction wheels 89 adapted to contact with the friction wheel or disk 67, so that rotation may be imparted from the shaft 65 to the drive shaft 85.

In this connection, it will be noted that the friction wheels 89 and sleeve 88 are of such proportions relative to the friction disk 67, that either wheel may be moved into con tact with the disk or both moved out of contact with the disk, so that the machine may be driven over the ground at substantially any speed in either direction by reciprocating the sleeve 88 to the proper position. lever 90 is adapted to control the movement of the sleeve 88. The front wheels 11 are connected with a steering wheel 91 and steering column 92 by any suitable means.

From the construction of the parts just described, it will be seen that, I have provided means whereby the machine may be moved forwardly or rearwardly over the ground at any desired speed by moving the lever 90. By actuating the lever 72, the gears in the gear box 70 may be moved, so as to lower the sweeping device into contact with the pavement, or out of contact with the pavement, so that the machine may be moved from place to place.

The construction of the sprocket 75 is such that the caster wheel shank 79 will remain in any position in which it is left when the rotation of the sprocket 75 is stopped.

The conveyer is so arranged that it may be driven independently. of the means for moving the machine over the ground, thereby making it possible to cause the brushes and scrapers of the conveyer to move over a given portion of the pavement any desired number of times during the forward progress of the machine.

The brushes 38 and 39 may be swung upon the axles, so as to sweep paths along the pavement of various widths, thereby making it possible to travel at a considerable speed with asmall amount of light dust thereon, or to travel over a pavement heavily coated with mud at a lower speed, but at the same time insuring that the pavement will be thoroughly cleaned.

The swinging of the brush 38 makes it possible to bring the comparatively lower end of the conveyer right up into the corners between the curbing and the edges of the pavement, so that the pavement may be cleaned without it being necessary for shovelers to follow the machine along and clean the gutters.

Some changes may be made in the construction and arrangement of my device without departing from the essential features and purposes of my invention, and it is my intention to cover by my claim any modified forms of structure or use of me chanical equivalents which may be reasonably included within its scope:

I claim as my invention:

In a device of the class described, the combination of a wheel mounted frame having a source of power mounted thereon, whereby movement may be imparted to the wheel mounted frame, a conveyer frame pivotally mounted on and placed at right angles to saidrwheel mounted frame and adapted to have one end lowered to rest substantially adjacent to the pavement, a conveyer rotatably mounted on said last conveyer frame, sweeping devices secured to the conveyer and adapted to travel with it, said sweeping devices being designed to come in contact with the pavement or the like during its travel, sweeping brushes mounted adjacent to either side of the conveyer frame and pivotally secured thereto, said brushes being arranged at an angle to the path of travel of the conveyer, whereby the rotation of said last brushes will cause dirt or the like from the street to be thrown in the path of said conveyer and said first sweeping devices, said sweeping brushes being capable of pivotal movement, whereby the angle at which they are relative to the conveyer may be varied, and means for raising the lowered end of the conveyer frame, whereby the device may be rendered inoperative for movement from place to place.

Des Moines, Iowa, September 6, 1919.

STEVEN DUICH. 

